From left: Mark Schulz of Norfolk, Kerry Benton and Stephen Solomon, both of Washington, D.C., wait for their wives to finish shopping Saturday afternoon, Nov. 28, 2015, at Kitsch on Shirley Ave. in Norfolk during Small Business Saturday.

From left: Mark Schulz of Norfolk, Kerry Benton and Stephen Solomon, both of Washington, D.C., wait for their wives to finish shopping Saturday afternoon, Nov. 28, 2015, at Kitsch on Shirley Ave. in Norfolk during Small Business Saturday.

NORFOLK

When a craft beer shop opened near Megan Pennington’s home five months ago, she slowly stopped frequenting chain alcohol stores.

She likes the shop’s selection of local beers, and she has a relationship with the bottleBOX owners, who are passionate about beer and know her by name.

Pennington, 29, went shopping on Small Business Saturday, but she said it is more than shopping on one day. It’s about supporting local jobs year-round.

“It can be hard to survive as a small-business owner when you’re competing against the big brand stores,” she said. “I’d rather support local than a chain.”

Dave Duenke, a co-owner of bottleBOX at 325 W. 21st St., said the store introduces new beers, some from Virginia breweries, to customers every week. The owners want to connect with customers in ways large stores don’t, he said.

“Customers are not just a transaction – they are our friends,” Duenke said.

American Express started Small Business Saturday in 2010 to encourage customers to support small and local businesses during the holiday shopping season.

Kylie Ross Sibert, a spokeswoman for the Retail Alliance, which represents independent retailers throughout Hampton Roads, said her organization always wants customers to shop locally first before hitting the big-name stores. Shopping locally, she said, strengthens the local economy, increases employment and nurtures a sense of community.

“We want people to shop local beyond Small Business Saturday,” Ross Sibert said. “So much of your money stays in the community if you shop local before you go to the big brand names.”

Vicki Bahr, co-owner of Kitsch at 803 Shirley Ave., said Small Business Saturday has regularly been one of the store’s most profitable days of the year. The store sells a variety of local items, including handmade jewelry, art and prints made in Virginia.

“We are not just promoting our small business but we support over 100 small businesses inside of our small business,” she said.

Moriah Shumpert, 23, of Norfolk shopped at Lavender and Lace, Kitsch and Running Etc. on Saturday.

“I like the idea of helping my community on Small Business Saturday,” she said.

To promote shopping local, the Retail Alliance is offering a promotion that will reward customers through its LOVEVA phone app. Until Dec. 31, those who make purchases at 10 local stores featured on the app will be entered into a contest to win one of five $100 gift cards to a business of the winner’s choice.

Tags

Locations

Alissa Skelton writes about the most important issues facing Virginia Beach. She reports on City Council, Oceanfront redevelopment projects, conflict of interest issues, racial disparity and the city's failed quests to build an arena and light rail.

Email

alissa.skelton@pilotonline.com

Get email notifications on Alissa Skelton daily!

Your notification has been saved.

There was a problem saving your notification.

Whenever Alissa Skelton posts new content, you'll get an email delivered to your inbox with a link.

Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items.

Followed notifications

Please log in to use this feature

Welcome to the discussion.

No name-calling, personal insults or threats. No attacks based on
race, gender, ethnicity, etc. No writing with your caps lock on –
it's screaming. Stay on topic and under 1,500 characters. No
profanity or vulgarity. Stay G- or PG-rated.
Read the full rules here.

Watch this discussion.Stop watching this discussion.

(0) comments

Welcome to the discussion.

No name-calling, personal insults or threats. No attacks based on
race, gender, ethnicity, etc. No writing with your caps lock on –
it's screaming. Stay on topic and under 1,500 characters. No
profanity or vulgarity. Stay G- or PG-rated.